Ingredients

• 1kg/2lb 4oz oxtail
• cut into 2.5cm/1in thick pieces
• trimmed of any excess fat
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 50g/2oz flour
• plus extra for dusting the oxtail
• 60g/2½oz butter
• plus extra for the carrots
• 1 onion
• finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves
• crushed
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tsp tomato purée
• 100ml/3½fl oz red wine
• 2 litres/3½ pints beef stock (or 2 good quality beef stock cubes
• dissolved in 2 litres/3½ pints hot water
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar
• ½ tsp English mustard
• 3 tbsp extra virgin rapeseed oil
• handful pea shoots
• handful small salad and herb leaves (for example
• silver sorrel
• bittercress
• amaranth
• corn salad or baby spinach)
• 60g/2½oz (shelled weight) fresh peas
• boiled
• 80-100g/3-4oz (shelled weight) fresh broad beans
• boiled

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 220C/400F/Gas 7.
• For the oxtail
• season the pieces of oxtail with salt and freshly ground black pepper and lightly dust them with a little flour.
• Place the oxtail into a roasting tin and roast in the oven for 30 minutes
• turning the oxtail pieces after 15 minutes to make sure they are nicely coloured on both sides.
• Meanwhile melt the butter in a pan over a low heat and gently cook the onion
• garlic and thyme for 3-4 minutes until soft
• stirring occasionally.
• Add the flour and the tomato purée and stir well.
• Gradually pour in the red wine and stock
• stirring well between additions to avoid lumps forming
• then bring the mixture to the boil.
• Add the pieces of roasted oxtail to the pan
• then cover and simmer gently over a low heat for about two hours. Check the pieces of oxtail - the meat should be tender and easily removed from the bone. If not
• replace the lid and cook for another 15 minutes and test again.
• Drain the oxtail into a colander over a bowl to reserve the sauce.
• When the oxtail is cool enough to handle
• remove the pieces of meat from the bone and place into a clean saucepan and cover with the reserved sauce. Bring to the boil
• then reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce has reduced enough to just coat the meat.
• Meanwhile
• for the dressing
• whisk all of the dressing ingredients together in a clean bowl and season
• to taste
• with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• For the salad
• place the pea shoots
• salad and herb leaves
• peas and broad beans into a bowl and cover with most of the dressing. Mix well to coat and arrange a little salad in the centre of each serving plate.
• To serve
• spoon a little of the warm oxtail meat around the salad with a small amount of sauce just coating the meat
• then spoon a little of the remaining dressing over the oxtail.